Beant Singh (Punjabi: ਬੇਅੰਤ ਸਿੰਘ) (6 January 195931 October 1984), was a bodyguard of the

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...

Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (; Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was elected as third prime minister of India in 1966 ...

, and was one of two, along with

Satwant Singh Satwant Singh Bhakar (1962 – 6 January 1989) was one of the bodyguards, along with Beant Singh, who assassinated the Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, at her New Delhi residence on 31 October 1984. Assassination The motivation for th ...

, who took part in her

assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

in 1984.

Family

Beant Singh was born in a

Ramdasia The Ramdasia were historically a Sikh Hindu sub-group that originated from the caste of leather tanners and shoemakers known as Chamar Terminology Ramdasia is a term used in general for Sikhs whose ancestors belonged to Chamar caste. Origina ...

family of

Chamar Chamar is a Dalit community classified as a Scheduled Caste under modern India's system of affirmative action. Historically subject to untouchability, they were traditionally outside the Hindu ritual ranking system of castes known as varna. ...

tribe to

Baba Sucha Singh Baba Sucha Singh is an Indian politician belonging to Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar). He was elected to the Lok Sabha, lower house of the Parliament of India from Bathinda in Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; � ...

and Kartar Kaur. Singh's widow

Bimal Kaur Khalsa Bibi Bimal Kaur (1951–1991) was an Indian politician and the wife of Beant Singh, one of the two assassins of Indira Gandhi. Biography Bibi Bimal Kaur was a nurse at Lady Hardinge Medical College when her husband assassinated Indira Gandh ...

initially joined the Sikh militant group, and then got imprisoned. Later she was elected from Ropar Constituency. His father,

, was also an elected member of the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past ...

from

Bathinda (Lok Sabha constituency) Bathinda Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 13 Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies of Punjab state in northern India. In 17th Lokh Sabh, it is represented by Harsimart Kaur Badal. She has been representing Bathinda Lok Sabha Constituenc ...

. Their son, Sarbjit Singh is a leader of SAD (Mann). In 2003, a

Bhog ''Bhog'' (n. 'pleasure' or 'delight', v. 'to end' or 'to conclude') is a term used in Hinduism and Sikhism. In Sikhism, it is used for observances that are fulfilled along with the reading of the concluding part of the Guru Granth Sahib. It can b ...

ceremony was held at the highest Sikh temporal seat in

Akal Takht The Akal Takht ("Throne of the Timeless One") is one of five takhts (seats of power) of the Sikhs. It is located in the Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) complex in Amritsar, Punjab, India. The Akal Takht (originally called Akal Bunga) was built by ...

, located in the Golden Temple Complex in

Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...

, where tributes were paid. In 2004, his death anniversary was again observed at

, Amritsar, where his mother was honored by the head priest and tributes were paid to Satwant Singh and

Kehar Singh Kehar Singh (Punjabi: ਕੇਹਰ ਸਿੰਘ, Kehar Singh) was an Assistant (the name of the post later termed as Assistant Section Officer) in the erstwhile Directorate General of Supply and Disposal, New Delhi, and was tried and execut ...

by various political parties. On 6 January 2008, the

declared Beant Singh and Satwant Singh 'martyrs of Sikhism', The Sikhism-centric political party in India,

Shiromani Akali Dal The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) (translation: ''Supreme Akali Party'') is a centre-right sikh-centric state political party in Punjab, India. The party is the second-oldest in India, after Congress, being founded in 1920. Although there are many ...

, observed the death anniversary of Beant Singh and Satwant Singh as 'martyrdom' for the first time on 31 October 2008; every 31 October since, their 'martyrdom day' has been observed at Sri Akal Takht Sahib.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Beant 1984 deaths Indian Sikhs People from Rupnagar Deaths by firearm in India People shot dead by law enforcement officers in India 1959 births Punjabi people Assassination of Indira Gandhi 1984 murders in India Prisoners who died in Indian detention Assassins of heads of government Indian people imprisoned on charges of terrorism Indian people who died in prison custody